Bookends
by shywr1ter
Summary: May, 2006: The cousin's crossover continues. Newly placed team leader Tony has lots of new responsibilities, just as his cousin moves to D.C. for the summer. Ziva lends a hand, and...? NCIS-Dark Angel crossover; prequel to "Concurrent Jurisdiction."
1. August, 2005 part 1

_**Disclaimer: Both NCIS and Dark Angel are TV shows created and owned by others. Me, I have only my dreams... **_

_**A/N: In the hope that shameless self-promotion is less heinous when admitted – and at the behest of someone who assures me that this is a good idea – I offer this cross- over as my first fic posted here in the NCIS listing. However, this isn't my first whack at NCIS. Over at the Dark Angel fiction section is an NCIS-DA cross-over that takes place in the year 2020, called "Concurrent Jurisdiction." In that world, as here, Tony DiNozzo and Logan Cale are cousins. Yes, almost-identical cousins, and they're getting a bit tired of hearing about it, thank you very much.**_

_**The following fic is a 'pre-quel' to that story, posted here since it takes place in the current era of NCIS, years before the world of Dark Angel, and dedicated to the NCIS fans who might be lured over to the Dark Angel site, just out of curiosity. I promise that Tony is still hot over there, even in 2020. After all, look at Gibbs...not bad for the other side of fifty, eh? **_

**Tuesday, August 23, 2005  
NCIS**

Only 10:20 in the morning, and Tony had finished his last report from the arrest they'd made the night before. He went back through the text as much to stall as to polish it; normally he'd rather get the report done and on Gibbs' desk and move onto whatever new project, even cold cases, that Gibbs had for him. But since May, Gibbs was even more driven to find Ari, to exact the revenge he craved for Kate's murder. So far, their own, 'unofficial' efforts, even coupled with the official ones of the FBI, had turned up little. True to form, the lack of progress just made Gibbs more driven, more hungry ... more demanding ... And since May, Tony felt the craving as well; this one was personal and even Gibbs hadn't found many reasons to prod Tony to work harder or faster or smarter on this one.

But not today ... today, he'd hit a wall; he just couldn't face another day of bashing his head against the same brick wall because, damn it, it did _not_ feel better to stop–not when they were no closer to finding Ari ...

It would come, DiNozzo knew it would. For all his years as cop, city and federal, for all that he'd seen, somewhere, deep down, Tony remained an optimist, confident that eventually, eventually, they would catch Ari and make him pay for Kate's murder. However, also for all his years as a cop, he was equally certain of the likelihood that some unfortunate ... _slip up_ ... would occur and Ari would be shot, trying to escape ... or attacking one of his captors ... or falling from a great height as he eluded capture... Shot. _Killed_. No probable cause hearings or pretrial motions or government intervention; no exclusionary rule hearings or redacted evidence or mandatory appeals. Case closed...

Tony tried yet again to shake off the thoughts, and reached in his drawer to find some Tylenol to push back the headache which never quite went away these days. Patience was no virtue in Gibbs' book; he succumbed to it rarely in any case, but most definitely not in this one, set as he was on taking all blame for Kate's death as a part of Ari's campaign against _him_, and every free moment brought additional projects for the team, investigations to rerun, interviews to redo, scenes to revisit, witnesses to re-question. Gibbs danced just this side of sanity in his obsession, still this side of responsible investigator, so the Director let him be a bit manic in his quest. Tony understood it, chased it along with Gibbs most of the time, and energetically did his part, for Kate, for the team, for Gibbs ...

But not today. Just a day off, just a morning, and he'd be back at it ... but just a few hours...

At least this morning, and notwithstanding the several extra projects left for his team to do while he was gone, Gibbs was off at a conference downtown through lunch, dragged along by Morrow who not only wanted Gibbs' input on the new regs to be implemented next month from Homeland Security, but, Tony suspected, also to force a change of scenery on him, maybe ease some of the intensity of single-minded purpose taking Gibbs over. Tony sighed, leaning chin heavily on hand for the moment as he stared at his computer screen. At least the one saving grace in all this was that not one person at NCIS – not Gibbs, not anyone on the team, not even the bank of psychologists each was made to see after the murder – told any of them how to grieve for Kate or demanded a specific way they should deal with her loss. No one told Gibbs to cool down; no one told Abby not to break into song or tears or giggles more jarringly than she used to; no one told Tim to stop fussing over them all, to stop running himself ragged schlepping coffee or bringing cookies or asking incessantly how they were doing, if he could do anything more to help ... no one told Ducky – especially, no one told Ducky – not to wax on with warm and lovely stories of Kate several times a day. And no one told _him_ that he needed to decide, already, exactly what and whom he'd lost, when he lost her ... and how he could ever get past the hole left, by her absence...

"Hey, Tony..."

"Hi, Andy..." DiNozzo looked over to watch the prematurely balding, nondescript little man slide into Kate's chair, at Kate's desk, and pull out Kate's keyboard to log himself in. "How'd the interview go?"

Andy barely looked up, his sad smirk accompanying a head shake. "Saw nothing, knows nothing, just like before." He pronounced. "She's as sorry as she can be, but her back was to everything, her baby was fussy so she'd knelt down by the stroller and was looking at teeth coming through gums, not a shooter on the roof." Andy finally looked up. "She was pretty nice about it, considering this was the third time she was asked."

"Yeah, I know..." Tony sighed. As Andy turned back to his work, Tony again had to hand it again to the folks in the psych department for their minor stroke of brilliance, at least as Andy was concerned – grieving and unfairness notwithstanding, they needed a replacement for Kate on the team. And with any team – especially one that had hit its stride in working together as Gibbs' team had done – the job of replacing a member lost in the line was an impossible task, unfair to the team and worse still to the replacement. So the pshrinks put their heads together and actually came up with a stroke of genius: they assigned a temp, a male to Kate's female, a mousy guy who made McGee look flashy, one quiet and adept and incredibly aware of why he was there and who he was replacing ... one who was genuinely nice, who also knew Kate, if only in passing, but who could appreciate how deeply the others felt her loss. He was bright, experienced, and agile in fitting in – experienced in that too, Tony would learn much later – and supportive. Somehow, they all were getting along – and slowly getting used to the idea that soon, there would be a new team member, assigned permanently ...

"Anyone else you plan to see this week?" Tony stalled again, this time with conversation.

"Yeah, a couple college kids. I need to get out there in the next day or so – their classes start up again next week and they're leaving town..."

Tony sat up with a start, suddenly remembering his own concern about classes starting up. "Shit," he spat under his breath, and turned to open an e-mail from last week, then hop over to the Internet when that wasn't enough. ...damn; this week. Not missed, but close... He sighed, audibly...

"Hey–you okay?" Andy tried. "You looked like you missed a final, yourself..."

"No, man, you saved my hide," DiNozzo scrolled back through the website's 'Class of 2009' listings of orientation schedules and placement exams and housing information, and flipped back over to the e-mail from his cousin, sent six days ago. Typical of the kid to underplay it, especially since he knew how badly Tony had been hurting. "... my cousin is heading off for his first year of college this week too, and I..." Tony wavered, looked back at the schedule, then switched to a couple other sites, his thoughts turning. "I didn't want to miss it..."

"Oh yeah?" Andy asked, affably. "Where's he goin'?"

"Yale." DiNozzo grinned proudly.

"Yale; damn." The man whistled. "This is a blood relative?"

Tony leaned around the monitor to make eye contact with Andy as he shot him a wry look. "I taught him all he knows..." DiNozzo stated flatly. "Kid's a genius...just like me."

Only three months ago Tony had been out to Seattle for a long weekend see his cousin graduate from high school – prep school, actually, he reminded himself wryly – and catch up with him, as well as with the less enjoyable members of the Cale family. Barely two weeks later, back at it, and they lost Kate. He'd fleetingly mentioned her death to Logan in an e-mail and immediately, his seventeen year old cousin had picked up the phone and called, knowing there was more, remembering more than Tony did the stories and comments DiNozzo'd made about all of the team, Kate not the least of them. He called again several times over the next weeks, more often than he usually did; Logan even asked about coming out to visit, and Tony knew damn well the kid was coming to check up on _him_, the older cousin. Personal loss – first one parent, then the other, followed by submission to an unfeeling, callous uncle and aunt who were always a bit jealous of his parents, not the least reason being their bright and talented only son -- made Logan Cale even more aware of others, especially those he sensed those who were hurting or powerless...

Losing Kate had reminded Tony of how fleeting life can be; the ministrations of his parentless cousin had reminded him to seize what time was left to him and to those he cared about–he'd _thought_. It didn't last long, it seemed; he now kicked himself that Logan was heading out to New Haven _this week_ to start his first year at Yale, knowing no one, sent on alone by relatives who not only couldn't be bothered, but minimized his success in obtaining advanced placement because of how much it rankled to have their boys turned away altogether, even with the legacy involved...

DiNozzo had more vacation time racked up than about anyone other than Gibbs. Nothing much was going on – or, at least, no _new_ investigations. Nothing that he'd miss if he took a four day weekend ... given their summer, given in the circumstances, he didn't think Gibbs could mind. And before he'd even cleared it with his boss, Tony started up his travel agent's website and punched in his request...

**Tuesday, August 23, 2005  
Rural Washington state, thirty miles outside of Seattle.**

There was barely a sound.

Or, rather, _human_ sound – the woods were full of the sounds of nature, birds and squirrel chatter and rustled undergrowth, a flip and splash as a fish jumped to catch a bug. The wind made the leaves in the trees along the water's edge patter against themselves in a hushed applause...

And the only 'human' sound was the muted scratch of pen on paper...

The lanky boy–young man, really–sat cross-legged on the pier where he'd learned to dive as a youngster, hunched over an open, leather-bound journal in his lap, writing steadily. The sun played across his shoulders and he shifted as finally, his thoughts were accomplished on paper and he felt the strength of the sun insistent on his shoulders. Laying the journal aside, he untangled his legs to dangle them in the still-cool water, and looked out over the private lake, all the more private mid-day, mid-week. No one knew he'd come up here to say good-bye – no one would care, really, he mused – nor would they understand his connection to the place. He was used to it by now, he told himself, used to their distance, and maybe even toughened by it. But this was and always would be _his_ place ... his favorite memories all came from here, the first summer he remembered with his older cousin Tony, learning from him to swim in his early years and sink hook shots a bit later; his long summer weeks there with his mom and, on the weekends, when he could get away from work, his father joining them...

He made himself homesick, thinking of leaving this place; more so than the thought of leaving Seattle for Connecticut. But he could never be as 'homesick' as he'd been as when his mother died ... or when he was only fourteen, and his father had packed him off to boarding school, with Uncle Jonas' son, his cousin Bennett ... never so homesick as when his father died not fifteen months later, leaving Logan to answer to his Uncle Jonas and Aunt Margo, who never found much he did acceptable...

The stillness was broken by the all-too human sound of his cell phone, sticking out of his backpack. Upon leaning over to pop the grid open and check the caller ID, Logan's face split wide with a grin and he hit the receive button. "Tony!" he grinned into the phone.

"Hey, cuz, you packed and ready to go yet?" DiNozzo's voice bounced in his ear, carrying his usual enthusiasm and cheer.

"Almost–enough to get started. Anything I forget, they probably have in Connecticut..."

"Smart ass. When are you getting there?"

Logan stretched his long, lanky form out along the dock, lying on his stomach and propping his cheek in his hand. "There's a red eye that leaves Seattle for Kennedy at 11:00 Thursday night; with the time change and all, we get in about 7 AM. I have a connection to Hartford that will get me there around 10:00 local time."

Tony heard the pronouns Logan chose for his arrival: 'I' ... 'me'... So neither Jonas nor Margo had reconsidered ... it made him even more glad that Andy had jarred his memory, in time that maybe he could step in. "Hartford?" Tony frowned. "Aren't you overshooting New Haven?"

"Yeah, well ... Uncle Jonas found out that Daphne's dad was arranging a car for her–you met her, when you were here last time..."

"Right – and off to Yale too, you said..."

"Uh-hmm. Jonas decided he couldn't have rumors coming back that the Seattle Hamiltons' Yale student had a car and the Seattle Cales' didn't..." Logan tried to keep it light; he knew how lame it would sound, to complain about having a brand new car bought, paid for, and waiting for him on his arrival ... but given the circumstances, he'd just as soon have taken the train out from the City ... " it just ended up being easier to pick up a car in Hartford."

"Well, once in a while Uncle Jonas stumbles backward into doing a _good_ thing..." Tony drawled. "I'd suggest you drive away smiling."

But Logan grinned, now, into the phone. He could always depend on Tony to see things as he saw them, assure him that _he_ wasn't the one off-kilter. "I'll remember that." Logan peered between the dock slats down to the rippling lake surface as he did as a child, when Tony was there to teach him to swim and ski and preen for the girls always fawning all over him. The latter, Logan regretted, he never did as well or as naturally as Tony DiNozzo could ... "So how are you doing? The investigation ... still pretty much the same?"

"Yeah, but we've got some good leads..." Tony lied, honestly trying to muster the energy to convince the teenager he had something positive to pursue.

The voice in response was noncommital. "You're still working nonstop, aren't you? Even you could use a break, once in a while."

"Problem is...you can't really sleep til the job is finished in a case like this ... so the more we focus on it, the more we do now...the faster we'll get answers and can put it and all of us to bed."

"Tony..." Logan sighed, again, as he had over the past weeks, sounding as if he were the older, wiser cousin, trying to shepherd along the misguided younger one. "You're gonna explode..."

"Yeah, well ... get settled into school and come see me, some weekends, get me out of the house." Tony challenged. "But only after you do all the school things you need to do to get to know people..."

"Sure thing, mom." Logan laughed.

"So back to you and Yale, you smart ass. They going to let you move in Friday, when you get there?"

"Yeah, they open the residences that morning, and have all sorts of ... _festivities_ ... starting that day."

"You sound a bit jaded for such a new student." DiNozzo chided. "The 'festivities' could lead to all sorts of interesting new adventures ... new _ladies_ ..."

"Adventures," Logan's tolerant chuckle, again sounding as if he were the adult and Tony, the teenager, was relaxed and easy, the agent noted in some relief. True, he was leaving for a place and people unknown to him, but leaving behind a home where he'd never been made to feel welcome – no wonder he sounded fairly centered with this move. "It's a stodgy old place, Tony, college or not. I suspect the 'adventures' will come from outside the officially sanctioned activities."

"Gotta start somewhere, cuz." DiNozzo knew his cousin well enough to know that if he went out there alone, he'd be fine; hell, he'd flourish at school. But for all the cool talk, Tony knew, Logan was still hurting for family, the loss of his loving, supportive parents abrupt enough to still smart – and Tony envisioned a quieter, shyer Logan avoiding the non-mandatory events, alone in a crowd of parents and relatives during the orientation weekend... "So humor me and e-mail me your travel itinerary, will you?"

"Okay – why, you want to have them peg me for another 'random' search?"

The grin in his cousin's voice was apparent, and Tony rolled his eyes at the teasing resurrected from his cousin's June visit and the security check he'd been through. "I'm still touched that you think I have such clout that I could get the TSA to do _anything_, let alone to pull a gag on someone." Logan had had a field day with that one; insisting that the 'brothers in blue' thing would extend even there, NCIS to TSA and back...

"You ever been to New Haven, Tony?"

The abrupt change of topic was unexpected, and made the young man's voice suddenly sound lonely – abandoned. Maybe Logan wasn't as strong as he wanted his cousin to believe, Tony realized. He was again relieved that he hadn't messed this up by forgetting – and that Gibbs had so easily given his blessing for him to take off Friday and even part of Monday... "Nope." He'd stick with his decision to make this a surprise, although he wasn't as certain as he'd been before that it would be more fun for his cousin this way. "Is there anything to see in New Haven _other_ than Yale?"

DiNozzo was glad to hear the chuckle, even though it was a bit grudging. "I have a feeling the town would be offended to hear you say that..."

"'Breaking Away,' 1979. The Townies always did feel overshadowed by the university..." Another snort from his cousin, sounding a bit less alone, and Tony felt better to hear it. "I could show up some weekend or two, you know, check it out. Do you suppose Yale will be like other schools–or do you think bright girls really _are_ dogs?"

This time the snicker at his cousin's hopelessly chauvinistic reference – all a part of his facade, Logan would always believe – was again grounded, certain of the family connection he had with the agent who now promised he'd come to visit. "If they are, be careful who you're talking to," he grinned. "Just my luck, you'll insult one of my profs, and there goes the semester..."

_**more to come...  
**_

* * *

_If you made it this far_, thanks for reading. I'd very much like to hear from you: Hate it? Love it? Barely tolerate it or not sure what to make of it? Interested in more here, or shall I slink off with the boys, back to Dark Angel, from whence we came? Feedback helps those of us poking our noses into new territory to know if it's safe... 


	2. August, 2005 part 2

_**Disclaimer: **NCIS and Dark Angel property of others. No financial gain realized from playing with them._

_**To recap: **This is a present-day back-story to a crossover that may be found in FFN's Dark Angel section, "Concurrent Jurisdiction," set in the year 2020. My appreciation to the NCIS fans who went to check out DA, and to the DA fans who came here to read. As for those of you who regularly read both: how in the world **does** MW become two such different characters? However he managed, my thanks to him, 'cos it's given me two such fun cousins to write..._

_**As always: **Thanks to you all kind enough to leave comments. They are craved and always, always given serious consideration!_

_ (CASE IN POINT! Hats off to Kyre, who busted me big time on my flight time for Tony: I checked so many web pages for this story, and yet... doh!> Just didn't think of coordinating that one! Thanks, Kyre, the time should work better now:)  
_

**Wednesday, August 24, 2005  
NCIS, 10:17 a.m. EDT**

Tony DiNozzo's body might have been sitting at his desk, but as he stared at his computer screen, his thoughts were a million miles away ... or, rather, some 2,300 miles ... and several long months...

It was only four years ago that Logan's mother died of a difficult illness, and not quite three years since his father, too, had died, unexpectedly. At the moment he'd heard about it, Tony's immediate reaction was that his cousin should come stay with him. He hadn't been too smart about it, just reacted in the emotional wake of hearing that Logan was alone, losing his father so soon after his mother died. In the end, Tony's best intentions were overcome by the power of clearer, cooler heads, the power of those who appeared, at least, to be the better choice for Logan's best interests ... the power of money...

It had been in Seattle, at the home of their uncle and aunt. Jonas and Margo had brought Logan and their son, Bennett, home from prep school, almost grudgingly, for the funeral. At the memory, yet again, this time years later at his desk in the middle of a work day, this time just one more time in an account too full to count, Tony beat himself up as he remembered their words and reasoning and wondered how they hell they talked him out of it, a tag team, one jumping in as the other scored a point...

"_You have to be joking, Tony; how in the world would you care for a teen-ager? You have no idea what it's like to parent a boy, let alone a headstrong one like Logan..."_

"_You're off on the road at the drop of a hat; for days at a time, sometimes. What would you do with him then?"_

"_You're young, single ... and your father's locked up your own inheritance so you can't waste any more of it. You probably have a tough time supporting yourself on what you make, working for the government ... how do you expect to take care of yourself **and** Logan?"_

"_You've hopped from job to job every other year, and now here you are again, in another new one..."_

"_You've never had any stability in your life and look at what a dangerous job you have..."_

"_You're ready to uproot Logan, just to bring him out to be with you? You'd be taking him from the only home he's ever known. He's always lived in Seattle, just as we have; he has family and stability here ... he's grown up with Bennett as a brother; he's in school with him now..."_

"_You haven't even thought about school for him, have you? How can you expect him to get into Yale as everyone has planned if his schooling is disrupted and suffers because of it?"_

"...but you don't love him. You don't care about him..." Tony heard himself suddenly murmur under his breath, a faint echo of the one and only argument he had. "Not like I do..."

They would not be cowed, not Jonas and Margo Cale, not when their nephew had, by virtue of his father's death, so soon after his mother's, become quite a wealthy young man indeed...

"_It's our duty..."_

"_What would everyone think?"_

"_He's the sole heir to Cale Industries' major stockholder and CEO. How can he learn the business from Washington? He needs to be prepared to run the company, when the time comes..."_

"_Be honest, Tony: a solid family in the town he's always known, a chance to finish the prep school he's been attending where he's an honor student, the training and guidance here that he needs for his life after college, the – **advantages** -- he has here ... or half of a one-room bachelor flat with you gone all the time, off on a case -- if not off on a ski trip with the girl of the week..." _

He would always feel bitter regret for believing them...

"DiNozzo!"

The voice got through; the tone and volume of Gibbs' bark made it clear that there had been at least two prior attempts to rouse him. "Yeah, Boss..." he managed, straightening, more by sheer reflex than cogent thought.

Gibbs saw Tony blink and for a moment, saw the haunted, vulnerable look clouding his eyes. Only Gibbs knew where DiNozzo really was going on his four day vacation; at Gibbs' irritation about the several days' leave, Tony had caved and told him about Logan's first weekend at college – alone – and Gibbs had surrendered. He'd remembered when DiNozzo's young cousin first lost his mother, then his father, and how much it meant to his agent to be there, for the boy. He remembered, too, how hard it was on DiNozzo in the days and weeks after his return from each funeral, especially the last one. Long after, Tony had confessed he had wanted to bring his cousin out to live with him, but that their aunt and uncle had outgunned him by a mile ... the knowledge had changed the way Gibbs saw Tony, from then on...

While McGee peered over at Tony, Gibbs saw DiNozzo's green eyes refocus and the veneer smooth back into place once again. Just as aware of McGee's curious look as he was Tony's reason for zoning out, he griped loudly, more as a cover for his senior agent than honest ire, "You already started your vacation, DiNozzo?"

"Yeah, well, Boss, can you blame me? I'll be surrounded by nubile, eager young females... no phones or computers or McGee..." Oddly true about the females, both men realized ... and both realized, too, that on this trip, they'd be far lower than normal on the DiNozzo priority scale. "Girls everywhere, McGee" the DiNozzo grin was back, if a slightly dimmer version than a few months before. " You ought to try it some time..."

"Your ass is mine for another twenty four hours, DiNozzo ... you don't make it worthwhile, I'm taking it out of your vacation time, and you can get a late start on the road to Nirvana..." Gibbs had already started his fast stride out of the bullpen, calling back over his shoulder at his immobile agents. "Get the sedan, McGee."

"Whadda we got, Boss?" Tony was up and moving not far behind Gibbs, pulling his bag onto his shoulder as he jogged to catch up, history shaken off yet again.

"Missing midshipman, never got to Annapolis on his way back to campus; parents have coin _and_ connections. These are your people, DiNozzo – you crack the case early, you can even get an early start on your vacation."

"Really?" Tony beamed. "Great, Boss; thanks." He darted into the elevator with Gibbs just as the doors were closing.

"Sure...just find the sailor ... find the perp if we've got one ... and wrap up the paperwork." Gibbs actually smiled a little at his words.

"Boss..." Tony's beam simmered down to disappointment as the impossibility became apparent. "My plane leaves at 6:00 tomorrow morning."

"Then you'd better get on it..."

**Thursday, August 25, 2005  
Seattle, Washington 9:03 p.m. PDT**

Logan rode in silence,staring out the window at the lights of downtown Seattle as they grew more distant, and the car sped him toward Sea-Tac airport. He suddenly felt more emotional than he thought he would, a sense of loss taking him over. It was almost a fleeting panic, a new uncertainty that he'd ever return. Seattle had always been his home, good times and bad, and no matter how few roots and ties he might have left, nearly all of them were centered here – and he was leaving them behind to relocate on the opposite coast...

He swallowed, hard, and pulled his eyes away from the sparkling night skyline, a sight he'd always loved, to look at his cousin Bennett, sitting in mournful quiet across from him. The ride was hushed in the back of Aunt Margo's car. Apparently she'd had a clutch of conscience at the last minute and, while neither she nor his Uncle Jonas could "manage" to free themselves to take their nephew to the airport, Margo sent her car and driver along so that her nephew wouldn't have to scramble for a cab. In spite of the circumstances, Logan felt a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth for his hapless younger cousin. He suspected Bennett's parents had no clue that the fifteen year old had stowed away to see him off at the airport, and suddenly wondered if the driver was just as clueless. More likely, Logan knew, he'd felt a surge of sympathy for both boys and pretended he hadn't noticed until it was too late...

"Bet your mom and dad don't know you're here." Logan prodded. "You're breaking up the united front."

"They ought to keep a better eye on me," came the mumbled, grudging anarchy.

Logan grinned to hear it. "Maybe they should." He looked over at Bennett, who was unable to make eye contact, already mourning the loss of the "older brother" Logan had become. Logan's late entry into his prep school had immediately granted him a slight increase in status. Logan's quiet, unassuming manner in a world of boys raised by the always-competitive upper crust, his seeming confidence in not caring about the "pack," made him seem untouchably charismatic; Logan was therefore viewed as mysteriously cool and therefore, an instant success. For the slightly pudgy, geeky Bennett, to whom Logan was always kind and available, being blood relative to the enigmatic new kid gave him a status he'd never experienced before. As Logan excelled in classes and sports, Bennett's stock rose too. Now it would all be over, and his best ally and support at home, a true friend, would be gone. "Junior year, Bennett. Lots of time to take over."

"They'll just think I'm trying to follow in your footsteps."

"Oh, no; don't do that," Logan laughed easily, softly. "All I was trying to do was to get through, to survive in a place where I didn't know anyone, in a school I would have left in a heartbeat, if I'd had the chance. Not an enjoyable way to spend the time."

Bennett's jaw nearly dropped. "No way!" At the look of soft surprise on Logan's face, Bennett went on, "everyone tried to copy you, your cool, how you sort of stood apart, but were so good at everything..."

Logan again looked surprised, considering it, then half laughed, sadly. "I was so homesick for my parents I couldn't do anything else ... and let's face it, that school wasn't exactly filled with NBA talent," Logan mused, "it wasn't too hard to out-play most of the guys there."

At the admission, Bennett sat back, mind boggled with this stunning new information. The height of cool was just ... hanging on? He shook his head. "No one ever knew."

"I'm glad..." Logan smiled, softly, as he turned back to look again at the softening Seattle skyline ...

**Friday, August 26, 2005  
JFK, New York, NY 8:04 a.m. EDT**

Tony had slumped down in one of the thinly padded, plastic seats at the gate where their flight to Hartford would be loading in probably thirty minutes or so, idly rolling a ball cap of crisp, new navy in his hands, breaking it in. He'd seen that Logan's flight had landed as scheduled about forty minutes earlier, so he'd probably gotten off the plane by now, made a restroom stop and was finding his way toward the gate. This was second nature to the agent, watching the crowd, reading them ... but now, watching for someone very familiar, the only reason he had to be covert was the added surprise of his approach. So unless Logan was adding a coffee stop, or at the gift shop, he shouldn't be long...

_There_. DiNozzo's grin grew involuntarily as he saw the lanky teenager wandering over toward the check-in desk across the waiting area, blinking a little with the effects of an overnight flight, peering up at the flight number and time to confirm that he was in the right place. He was oblivious to Tony's presence; his bleariness, his purpose, and his lack of suspicion that his cousin would just appear unannounced, combined to render DiNozzo invisible to Logan. Amused and pleased to see him, Tony just watched as Logan finished squinting at the board and turned to survey the hall, finding and setting off toward a Starbuck's counter. With a grin at the back moving away from him, Tony decided to make his move, and smoothly rocked forward to his feet, walking quietly up behind the slender form, now nearly as tall as he, moving into line behind another customer...

"Hey, kid..."

Logan turned immediately, looking uncertain, as if he'd heard a ghost ... and at the sight of a grinning Tony DiNozzo there in front of him, his eyes grew as wide as saucers.

Before Logan could speak or even move, Tony leaned forward on the balls of his feet and planted the cap on his cousin's head, gleaming white letters suddenly proclaiming "Yale" across his crown. "_Now_ you look like a Yalie."

"Tony!" Logan found his voice, his green eyes filling, emotions finally demonstrated for the first time in his new venture. Throwing his arms around the agent, he hugged DiNozzo close, overcome with his cousin's appearance. All the pain, loneliness and fear were pushed far aside in that moment, and he gasped with his surprised laughter.

After a brief moment of his own surprise at the intensity of his cousin's reaction, Tony hugged back, fiercely, his own eyes prickling, deeply gratified that he'd decided to come. "Good to see you too, cuz," he spoke, his voice thick.

"What are you doing here?" Logan managed to pull back enough to look at his cousin's face, searching for an explanation. "Did you have a case up here?'

"No, I came to see you. I figured you might like to have some company at orientation, you know, someone older and wiser, who knows how to get around this college thing..."

"You're kidding; I..." He suddenly looked up to see they were at the counter, and he stammered his order quickly, Tony following and moving to push Logan's hand back from his hip, pulling out several bills to cover the coffee. Orders given, Logan turned back again to ask, "You came out, a special trip, just to ... to come out to school with me?"

"If you'll have me." Tony grinned.

"Are you joking?" Logan beamed, ten feet tall that his cousin would do such a thing for him, words failing him. Taking their coffee, they turned back toward the gate, Logan just shaking his head. "Geez..." was all he could manage, "Geez."

"So you have a schedule or something that tells you what sort of things they have arranged for the weekend?" Tony plopped back down into one of the plastic seats outside their gate, Logan following to sit beside him.

The younger cousin nodded energetically, pulling at a packet sticking out of his backpack. "There's lots of stuff, I just hadn't really looked too closely..." he confirmed, suddenly looking up at the gate in front of them, and turning to look at DeNozzo. "Wait – you mean you have a ticket for this flight, too?"

Tony rolled his eyes in mock exasperation. "Well, yeah. Be kinda dumb of me to come all the way out _here_, just to watch you get on and have to run after you again to Hartford."

The green eyes shone again in wonder and joy at the appearance of the most important person to him left on the planet, moisture making them sparkle all the more. "I have to pick up a car, there..." he apologized.

"I know." DiNozzo reminded him, grinning, easily, and Logan just shook his head, still in awe at events. "How was your flight?" Tony nudged.

"Okay. Good." Logan nodded, almost shy in the presence of his hero. A new thought brought his eyes back to DiNozzo's. "How did you get away from work?" Logan knew how the summer had been for Gibbs' team, and the intensity of their investigations made it even more surprising that his cousin was able to get away.

"I just told Gibbs that you were starting school, and that I wanted to be there with you for your first weekend. He sent me with his blessing for both of us."

Logan looked long into the agent's face, seeming to weigh his words. Finally turning away with a sheepish grin, Logan looked into his lap. "Nah..." He countered.

"Yeah, he did. Well, he wasn't going to believe me til I showed him the hat." Tony grinned.

Suddenly remembering, Logan reached up to pull the cap off and look at it, amazement still muting his reactions. After staring at the cap in his hand for several moments, he moved to pull it back on and smiled broadly. "Damn." He thought another moment, and sobered slightly, looking his cousin in the eye to say sincerely, "When you go back – tell him thank you, from me."

"Absolutely." DiNozzo looked proudly at the young man, and felt another wave of his own emotion for the kid who'd stolen his heart years ago. Sliding way down in his seat, looking smug, he bumped Logan's knee with his own and took a long sip of his coffee. "Now, tell me again what Yale has that Ohio State wouldn't have had..."

_**...tbc..**_


	3. May, 2006 part 1

_**Disclaimer:**__ NCIS and Dark Angel property of others. No financial gain made from borrowing them._

_**A/N:**__ No, I didn't abandon the cousins! (Good grief, it's been forever.) _

_Please see earlier chapters' A/Ns for what this weird little NCIS- Dark Angel cross-over is all about. Believe it or not, this hasn't been forgotten; the story plan has been revamped at least a couple times, and as it was being re-thought, it was interrupted by real life and other pushy fic. __**If you're still out there, reading:**__ please drop me a review with any and all comments and thoughts you may have. They really do help, and make it easier to keep stories going... _

**Saturday, May 13, 2006  
Dulles International Airport, 8:17 a.m. **

"On behalf of everyone at Continental Airlines, thank you for flying with us, and welcome to Washington..."

Logan peered up at the hazy sky, remembering that it would be about ten degrees warmer and, uncharacteristically early this year, twenty times stickier here in Washington than in New Haven, where he'd just finished his finals and canceled one set of summer plans for another.

_Hope this is the right thing to do,_ he badgered himself yet again, his decision feeling just a little more final as his plane continued to slow, making a lazy turn to taxi toward the terminal.

The internship _was_ right. It was prestigious and only occasionally offered, and even then usually went to seniors or grad students, so the fact he got it _now_ was an even bigger deal, he'd been told. It was a chance for real work with amazing writers. The fact that it was in Washington just made it all the better.

Or, it would have, at any other time. He knew he could help Tony let off some steam if he'd let him, as long as he could get his cousin to understand that he didn't need a nanny, that he could entertain himself when Tony was needed at work. _Look, Tony, I'm here to work, too,_ he could hear himself saying, _we'll just play it by ear..._

He also knew that if he couldn't convince Tony of just that, he'd only make things worse for him right now, if the agent felt the need to supervise, check in, cater to and care for his younger cousin...

The plane pulled to a stop, the cabin bell pinged, and the seatbelt sign flashed off. As did the many passengers on the early morning flight, Logan stood and opened the overhead bin to pull out his backpack. Dropping it at his feet and facing ahead down the aisle, unseeing, he started wondering how he'd break the news to Tony.

_Just gotta show Tony I'm here for a job, not a vacation; no need for babysitters or 'adult supervision.' I convince him he should call only when he feels like it, when he has time; I won't call and bug him and won't expect him to be around much..._

_Sounds easy enough, _he grimaced to himself._ Let's see if you can pull a DiNozzo-casual attitude when you say it... _

The passengers began to stir, the line moving forward slowly. Logan felt a little flip of excitement in his belly, just like when he was a kid, in anticipation of seeing his cousin again. This time it had been, what, three months since he'd seen him? And that last visit was just a fast weekend. _This will be a longer stay and if things settle down for Tony, maybe we'll actually be able to get some time to enjoy my being in his backyard..._

But it still felt like confession time, and he wondered how Tony would take it. He'd never been anything but completely honest with Tony before, so this felt uncomfortable. His cousin was meeting him at the airport and as far as Tony knew, just spending the day with him before Logan was to get on an 11 PM flight to Brussels. Logan never thought he'd find himself worried about being an imposition, and the last thing he wanted was to raise his cousin's stress level even more.

The timing sucked.

Everything had changed a couple days earlier, when Tony called to confirm his arrival time. He hadn't wanted to mention it, it seemed; the call was somewhat awkward, and from the first his cousin sounded harried – distracted. He finally got to the reason. "Look, cuz, I don't anticipate anything, but ..." Tony's tone was apologetic, torn. "I'm sort of on permanent call these days; it's always possible that something might come up and I'll be late ... or unavailable..."

Logan wondered what the newest case was. He'd _always_ seemed to be on permanent call with his job, but he'd never seemed too bothered by it before. He tried a light jab. "Gibbs have you on another of those 'no one sleeps 'til the case is solved' cases?"

There was an uncharacteristic pause before Tony laughed – hollowly. _Shell-shocked_, Logan would think later. "Uh – no, sort of the opposite. Gibbs ... left. Quit. And... I guess I'm Gibbs now. So..."

Logan hadn't really heard his words after that; it was more the tone that carried them that spoke volumes. Logan thought he knew how Tony felt about his job, his boss. His cousin trusted his own skills and abilities, but trusted Gibbs' more. This wasn't planned and Tony was still getting used to the idea of being in charge ... without his mentor's guidance.

"Hey, Tony, if something's going on, no reason to come out to the airport..."

"No, hey, are you kidding?" The DiNozzo bravado was back. Almost. "You've been my cousin a lot longer than ... than I've been Gibbs," he finished lamely. "Short of World War III, I'll be there."

As they hung up, Tony had assured Logan that the visit was just what he needed, and he was sure nothing would interfere with their day. _He meant it; he wanted it to be true_, Logan remembered... _but Tony just wasn't all that sure things would work out this trip..._

As he joined in the shuffling movement up the aisle, Logan tried to convince himself that this was actually better. _He'll have to have __**some**__ time off over the summer, once in a while ... some weekend mornings, maybe ... I'll just point out how handy it will be, with me just around the corner, and in one fast phone call I can be there for some one on one before breakfast. No expectations, just a handy call away. Convenient. _

_Convenient_, he repeated to himself, stubbornly. _That's why you still haven't had the nerve to tell him you switched internships, and wanted to ease it into the conversation face to face. You should have just called him right then, when you got accepted last month ..._

Logan followed the line of passengers out of the plane and on out of the gate toward the public areas, where he could see others waiting to meet arrivals, heard greetings and laughter as other passengers were welcomed by friends and family. Glancing though the crowd, Logan saw no sign of his cousin, who usually was waiting for him front and center.

_Maybe late ... maybe something came up..?_

Logan wandered on past the crowds a short way, peering up at the arrival board, wondering if they had his gate listed correctly. He scanned the listed arrivals...

"Logan Cale?"

A clipped, no-nonsense, decidedly female voice suddenly met his ears, and in surprise he turned to its source. As he did so, he saw a dark-eyed beauty, slim and strong, appraising him. As his eyes met hers, before he could speak, her face lit up in a broad, amused smile and she nodded as she added, with a laugh coloring her slightly accented words, "oh, yes, you are definitely Logan Cale."

He blinked. And gulped. She was amazing...

The woman took a couple steps closer and he managed to find his voice, barely. He stammered, "y...yes, I am."

"I was told you would d look like Tony. I am Ziva David ... I work with your cousin."

She stuck out her hand and, as he looked back on things several hours later, Logan thought he'd been together enough to actually shake it. He knew it took him a moment to catch his breath and suspected that when he did, it was with a bit of a blush. The dark hair, the intelligent, probing, humored dark eyes ... he'd never seen a woman so beautiful ...

"Hi... I'm Lo..." He stopped, knowing he reddened even more. "But ... you already knew that..."

"C'mon," she nodded toward the exit, "I am filling in for Tony -- he was called in for a briefing this morning, early, but should be done in the next hour or so." She slowed slightly as they neared the baggage area. "Do you have any bags to pick up?" When Logan just shook his head, silently, she resumed her pace and explanation. "He did not want you to have to just sit here waiting, so I volunteered to take you to him."

Logan smiled, nodded... and gulped again.

_So this is Ziva..._

Tony had mentioned her ... he'd said she was great looking, but then, Tony said that about nearly every woman he knew ... Logan shook himself. _Get a grip_, he lectured himself, _she'll think you're an idiot. She works with Tony, and he probably doesn't need you doing or saying something stupid. Besides ... isn't she the one he said could neutralize ten men at once with some gum and a rubber band? _Logan managed to relax a little with his private joke. "I guess things have been pretty crazy over the last week or so."

She nodded, and offered, "it has. And Tony is up to his eyelids in work."

Logan frowned and looked at her sideways as they walked, hesitating before speaking. Seeing the familiar uncertainty, Ziva reconsidered and said "not eyelids..."

"Eyebrows?" Logan helped.

"Eyebrows," she agreed. "We have been busy."

**Saturday, May 13, 2006  
NCIS, 9:03 a.m. **

Logan glanced down again at the plastic visitor's tag he'd been given as he hurried to follow Ziva, now striding into the elevator. From the first moments she'd met him at the airport, he'd continually assessed – and reassessed – what his cousin had said about her over the last several months as she had been added to his team, and all it did was raise new question after question about the woman who had ferried him efficiently and quickly through the light Saturday traffic to the Navy Yard and NCIS' offices.

Quickly and efficiently and at times, self-consciously, Logan reflected: several times it seemed as if she was ready to leap through an opening in traffic or dart around a frustratingly sedate driver, but with a soft snort of impatience, she would dial it back, lighten her foot on the accelerator or drop back a little from the bumper ahead of her. _As if she's in a race, aching to break from the pack..._

She'd offered her thoughts as tour guide as she drove; he wondered how long she'd actually been in the District herself. He listened politely but found himself far more fascinated by who she was and what her life must have been like this far: _she can't be that much older than I am and if I were an Israeli, I'd be up for my mandatory year of service right about now_, Logan considered. _Given what she's doing now – did she start off with the Mossad right away? Can they do that? She certainly moves with the grace and confidence that you'd expect from someone who can take care of themselves..._

... for the first time in his life, Logan Cale was face to face with a woman who, unlike the pampered princesses or awkward bookworms of his family's social set, was a strong, self-reliant, powerful, skillful warrior – and he found himself drawn in by her manner, by the thought that behind the beautiful face was a trained assassin...

... and by the memory of his cousin implying that, since she'd joined the team, she hadn't really dated much yet...

"You've been here to NCIS before, yes?"

He cleared his throat – _before you get out of here you will prove to her that at least one time you can speak without having to clear your throat or lick your lips first – and she probably has been trained to recognize what every little tic means_ – and nodded, "yeah, but not for a while. Tony brought me over once, that first year after he started here, and we've stopped in to use the gym a couple times since..."

"Then you have met Abby and Dr. Mallard, at least, and McGee?"

Logan nodded, "well, Abby and Gibbs. But the others weren't around..."

Did she react a little when he added Gibbs' name to the list? It made sense, from the way Tony had gone on about him, that Gibbs had that sort of fear-respect presence in all his subordinates – and they would all be struck by his abrupt departure. But Ziva was nodding and, as the elevator doors opened, she led him off the elevator to the area he remembered from before, where Tony and the others had their desks. "I think Abby is here today, working on some new material we brought in last night. I'm not sure about the others."

It suddenly occurred to Logan that Ziva was trying to play 'good host,' entertaining him while he waited for Tony. The realization made him smile suddenly, suspecting that Tony had made her think he needed tending, and that as a result he might as well give up on any ideas he might have had, for _her_ and his summer. For the first time he was able to relax and offer a genuine smile of appreciation. "I don't want to throw off anyone's schedule. I really appreciate the ride, Ziva, but if you have work you need to do, or had plans..."

"Hey cuz!"

Logan looked up to see his cousin on the open staircase above him, dressed in a formal, dark suit, white shirt and dark tie, grinning widely to see him. But there were dark circles under his eyes, the suit was far more serious than he'd pick for any casual work meeting, and his grin was the one Tony used when he was covering what was really going on inside.

_...not good,_ Logan thought. "Hey, cuz," he called back. "Where's the funeral?"

Tony rolled his eyes and tried another grin, but it was worse than the first, and Logan realized that his attempt at humor must have just rubbed salt into whatever wound he was suffering. "My bed, to have hauled me out so early on a Saturday," DiNozzo covered, coming up to grab his cousin in a loose, guy-affectionate sort of hug. "And luckily, not yours, although I wondered how smart I was to ask Ziva to pick you up."

Logan sensed an opening, and shrugged, "why? She drives better than you do."

To which Ziva crowed in delight, and Tony's sour consternation in response actually looked far more normal for him. _Maybe a breather from whatever it is_, Logan hoped, and felt himself relax a little when Tony ran with it.

"Then she was just being polite, because if she didn't have her law enforcement connections here and a flashing light to stick on her car on occasion, she'd have gone broke by now paying all the fines she'd have gotten for reckless endangerment and all sorts of other violations..."

"I have never gotten a citation!" Ziva returned, indignantly. "Which is not true for you..."

"Dumb luck," he snorted, grudgingly. Logan looked to his cousin in curiosity, hearing that Tony was capitulating quickly, allowing the debate to be over. He tried not to show his concern. _Must really be bad for him_, Logan thought sadly, as he watched his cousin shift gears back to him.

"So cuz, how much time do you have?" Tony's voice carried his honest pleasure to see him, but he was not quite covering the strain he was feeling. "We still have all day, right, to hang out and get some dinner, before you have to go back to the airport?" As he listened to his cousin, Logan noticed that Ziva seemed to react to Tony's demeanor as well. Her expression softened a little from her banter with DiNozzo, in apparent understanding, and when Tony changed topics, she unobtrusively stepped back from their conversation slightly. In only a moment or two, she moved around to sit at one of the desks in the bullpen, effectively withdrawing from their conversation.

Logan nodded at Tony's question, suddenly on the spot. This wasn't the best place to explain to his overly-protective cousin that his summer had changed so drastically, but Tony was "up to his eyelids," as Ziva had said, and now was as good a time as any to convince Tony that he didn't need a keeper. "Yeah, but there was a change in plans, so there's no rush for tonight..."

"Oh, really? Good, we don't have to hurry to get you dinner, then. I have about another hour here but then I'm all yours. When are you off, tomorrow morning?"

"Uh–" Logan licked his lips, suddenly nervous. "I'm not. I'm staying here this summer." As his cousin looked momentarily overwhelmed, Logan hurried, "I took an internship here, at the Post."

The bullpen was silent, for the moment ... and Logan refused to succumb to having any reaction at all to what he saw in Tony's eyes...

_To be continued._


	4. May, 2006 part 2

_**A/N:**__ This is part 2 of the May, 2006 "episode" of this story, begun in Chapter 3. A brief recap follows, but it won't really make much sense unless you read Ch. 3. Chapters 1 - 2 are a separate episode so not essential to follow this installment. However, this is a part of the NCIS-Dark Angel crossover cousins-universe, which will need explanation if you haven't stumbled on it yet. A brief explanation may be found in Chapter 1's A/N. _

**A/A****: **As in,** "author's apology"** – I really am sorry it's taken so long to update. I realize those who started following this crossover way back when may not be around here much anymore! I'm still wavering between keeping this cousins-fic in the NCIS section and either moving it to DA, or to one of their official crossover sections (which I'm afraid would be the kiss of death.)

For those of you who do read – _**thank you**_. Would love to hear your thoughts – it would be good to know you're still out there.

_**Disclaimer: **__NCIS and Dark Angel property of others. No financial gain made from borrowing them._

* * *

_**Recap**__: Only days after Gibbs regains his memory, only to quit and head to Mexico soon after, Tony's cousin Logan arrives in Washington – as far as Tony knows, only for the day on a layover before he flies to Belgium for the summer. However, with Tony swamped with the new workload and responsibilities of suddenly becoming team leader, the newly minted college sophomore announces that he's staying in the District for the summer._

* * *

**Saturday, May 13, 2006**

**NCIS, 9:06 a.m.**

The silence was pin-drop oppressive, and Logan wished he could drop through the floor and disappear, given the flash of – _what was it, panic?_ – he'd just seen in his cousin's eyes. _He's overwhelmed with everything that has happened and I'm just one more responsibility that he thinks he has to take on, when he doesn't feel ready for any of it._ In the next moment Logan saw two more changes in the eyes he knew so well – Tony's realization of exactly what his gut response had been – and that his favorite cousin had seen it for what it was...

So just as Tony himself would have done, Logan started talking, eyes everywhere but on Tony – to save face, to save the day, to deflect the pain he felt, to give his cousin a way out of the responsibility he didn't need to take on and any guilt he felt for not having time for him. "A... and the way they were talking, it sounds like they are going to have me running me all over the place." As he began, Logan was keenly aware of two things: that his voice cracked a little in his clumsy scramble to diffuse the awkwardness his sudden announcement had created, and that, no matter how she'd tried to seem inconspicuous, Ziva was still nearby, as if to be ready for whatever her team – or her team leader – needed. "So I'm probably not going to be around much anyway, and won't have all that mich time to come hang out with you, even when you have some time..."

When Logan dared to look up again at his cousin he saw another expression shift, and a look of regret and self-reproach in the eyes that looked so much like his own. Between the fact that Tony was an experienced investigator and that Logan just wasn't all that good a liar, not when it was to someone who mattered, Logan knew that Tony wasn't buying a moment of it and saw through all his babbling. Tony took a step closer. "Logan, I ..."

"Special Agent Dinozzo – "

At the interruption, both pair of green eyes looked up to the catwalk overlooking the bullpen to see the NCIS Director looking down at her newest team leader. As soon as eye contact was made, she offered a slight, no-nonsense tip of her head back toward her office before turning to stride away, knowing he'd follow. When Tony looked back to Logan his expression of frustration had returned – but this time, for the interruption.

"Another hour, Logan, and I'm all yours," he promised, his demeanor serious. "Okay?"

The younger man swallowed the insistent niggle of hurt he'd felt and nodded quickly, not trusting his voice for more than he'd already said. Seeing it, DiNozzo kicked himself yet again for letting the strain and exhaustion get to him so much that his cousin now thought he wasn't welcome. Faced with the kid's sad expression and the Director's certain impatience, he did the only thing he could think to do at that moment– he suddenly threw his arms around Logan and hugged him tight. Neither cousin saw the pair of Israeli eyebrows pop up slightly in surprise at the unexpected action.

"It's _great_ that you're here – you'll help things not suck as bad as they would otherwise," Tony was saying, low enough that only Logan would hear his candid admission about the rocky transition period he knew was ahead. But as quickly as he'd hugged him, Tony then pulled back to arm's length, still gripping his shoulders as he looked his cousin deep in his eyes. "It's gonna be great," he insisted. "But I've got to get back with the Director, and finish up some things she wants me up to speed on." This time Logan's silent nod was accompanied by a more accepting smile, and Tony pressed, "just ... have a seat at my desk here, and wait for me, okay? The monitor back here gets only ZNN, but you can catch up on the news..."

This time Logan's smile was even more genuine, touched by his cousin's efforts to find him something to kill the time while he waited. "Go," he nodded. "I'll wait."

He was rewarded by a relieved slap on his shoulder as DiNozzo spun to jog around to the stairs. As he disappeared from view, Logan sighed, his thoughts jumping ahead to the summer. Even before he'd left Connecticut Logan had worried that Tony would be disappointed that he wasn't going to Belgium, as much as his cousin had seemed so impressed with his going. But he had assumed Tony would be glad to have him nearby. He hadn't stopped to think about how much more responsibility Tony had now, how it had all come up so suddenly, and how, of course, he took it all deeply to heart. Logan wondered if there was any way to make the summer easier for him...

"If you are like your cousin..." Logan looked up to see Ziva standing in front of him suddenly, her large brown eyes kind with understanding, "...you will have run out of your home at the break of dawn today without eating, scrambling with just enough time to catch your flight, and you are now famished."

Logan relaxed a little with her willingness to pretend the last few moments hadn't happened, and shrugged, "well, I do it enough that I get used to my stomach growling."

"But you have at least an hour to wait – and with Director Shepard, it is as likely it will be ninety minutes as sixty. There is a coffee shop not far away and they have some food as well, maybe to ... tide you over, yes? We can be back easily within the hour."

Logan hesitated – an hour with the attractive, fascinating woman sounded like just about the best idea he'd ever heard, but knew she was probably just being a good host in Tony's stead, and thought he actually blushed a little. "Thank you, Ziva – but I'm sure you have work you need to do ..."

"Some, but nothing that cannot wait until Monday. And I am in the mood for a chai, so I will be going anyway. You would be keeping me company."

That was enough for Logan – he stood and grinned at the beautiful woman before him, his mood definitely lightened with her offer. "Then, yeah, sounds good – but my treat – a thank-you for coming to the airport to get me."

"But you have not even begun working yet – I cannot let you pay if you are still a poor student..." she replied smoothly, her eyes twinkling. "I will pay this time, as a welcome to the city. Once you begin working ... I will let you pay the next time."

Logan's grin in response was dazzling, as he dared to consider the promise of a "next time" Ziva dangled before him. "Okay," nodded, not mentioning the fact that the internship didn't even cover his expenses for the summer. As he followed her very fine form out of the bullpen toward the elevator, he wondered how many times his cousin had exactly this same view...

**Saturday, May 13, 2006**

**The Bean & Bagel, 9:40 a.m.**

The coffee shop was just off the Navy Yard's premises, and the morning had warmed enough to promise a beautiful day. Logan agreed with Ziva's suggestion that they take their drinks and his generous slice of banana bread outside to sit at one of the tables in front of the place. He suspected that her friendly chatter wasn't really typical of her, but offered to ease his awkward arrival – and the thought made him even more infatuated with her than he'd been when first seeing her. As they spoke, he found himself trying to remember Tony had ever implied any interest in her – and when he couldn't really recall any, he wondered if his usually perceptive cousin hadn't fallen for her as fast as he had, or he simply kept it to himself. _Maybe she's friendlier with a lost kid, too_, Logan reminded himself. _She'd probably laugh her ass off if she knew what you were thinking, Cale..._

But no matter why she was being so nice to him, Logan found himself relaxing around her, and before long the discussion turned to the main thing they had in common: his cousin.

"He is not one for talking about himself," Ziva explained. "Oh, he talks incessantly, and makes people think that _he_ is his favorite subject, but he does not say much about what _really_ is going on in his life. He avoids much detail about his earlier jobs, or his family and growing up." She saw the understanding gleam in Logan's eyes, and went on, "yet those rare times he did – maybe on a long drive or stakeout – often he mentioned you, a small comment or memory. The little things he would talk about were very sweet – it reminded me of the memories I have of my younger sister, whom I loved very much. It was clear the way he spoke how he felt about you. And then, when you were scheduled to fly in this weekend," she smiled, "he was able to forget about everything happening here to brag for twenty minutes about your year at university." She grinned. "He is really very proud of you."

Logan's self-conscious beam made it clear how much her words pleased him. "Yeah, well, you should hear me talk about him," Logan admitted, reminded of the bond he had with his cousin. "My friends either think he must either be able to walk on water, or that I'm remembering some super hero from a comic book and not a real person."

Ziva saw that the younger man was easing past the hurt she'd seen in him earlier in those moments with Tony in the bullpen, but wondered if he understood where his cousin's reaction came from. Certain that Tony would never have reacted that way under normal circumstances, Ziva felt the need to explain the circumstances of her partner's recent promotion. "And he probably does not tell _you_ all the details of his job, especially not in recent days?" At Logan's soft, ironic snort of agreement, she offered softly, "so he has probably not told you how Gibbs' leaving has affected us ... especially _him._" She paused, and smiled faintly, "Tony looked up to Gibbs as he would a father, definitely as his mentor. And not only did he lose that mentor suddenly, both physically here, with us, but ... psychologically. Gibbs ..." She paused, then explained, "Gibbs has not fully recovered from his injuries. He was in a coma, for several days, and was without much of his memory of several more. While his memory is mostly back, there are still some holes, and his emotional recovery..." She shrugged. "I do not believe that Gibbs would have just walked away if he had been himself," she said as much for herself as for Logan, shaking her head in her remaining disbelief. "If he had not quit, I believe the Director would have forced him to take medical leave for a time, because he was still not himself. But this way..." She trailed off, and shrugged again. "I believe Tony feels as if he is suddenly alone with all his new responsibilities."

Logan nodded, looking strangely accepting, almost as if that sort of alone-ness was a familiar emotion – something she had not seen from many Americans. "But the rest of the team is still together, right?" he asked. "You can all be there for him?"

She smiled sadly. "Yes, but ... sometimes, we do not remember as we should, what this must mean for Tony, more than for us. Or when we do – Tony feels that he must _become_ Gibbs, to be strong and certain and infallible. And that means not letting us know if we can help him handle things – or if he would like us to."

Logan smirked softly. "Yeah, sounds like Tony. He can be stubborn about admitting he needs a hand, sometimes," Logan agreed, then mused, "he talks about all of you, a lot – the way you say he talks about me. You can help him through whatever he has going on."

Ziva accepted Logan's words with a soft smile and a nod, but remembered that this morning, Logan needed a hand as much as his cousin did. She got back on topic. "But for your time here, this summer – I think when things settle down a little more he will have more time – and be very glad to know you are so close by."

Logan's shy smile returned, and he nodded. "I hope so," he said simply.

"I do not know what he has scheduled here for the rest of the weekend, but the team is not on duty. Perhaps you two can get some time before you start your internship, yes?"

"Well, I'd rather not take up his time if he needs time to decompress, or has too much to do – with a whole summer here, there's no rush. We'll find time; I'll be here for a while," he said with as much conviction as he could manage.

"But it is good to make a point to get together since you know it is just the summer." At the soft insistence in Ziva's voice as she urged him not to let the summer slip by, Logan suddenly remembered that she'd used the past tense when she talked about her sister – _I loved her very much_, were her words. Logan couldn't think of any other interpretation for the words, and felt a wave of sorrow for the woman, understanding more than most nineteen year olds could about the loss of someone so close...

**Saturday, May 13, 2006**

**NCIS, 10:45 a.m.**

When Tony came down the stairs from MTAC he found his cousin not at his desk where he'd left him, but leaning over Ziva's shoulder as the pair looked intently at something on her computer screen. He'd had been released for the rest of the weekend, he suspected in part because the Director had seen the resemblance and asked about his visitor, but it didn't make DiNozzo feel much better about how Logan's visit had started off. Seeing Logan looking more relaxed, apparently thanks to Ziva, he felt a bit more settled, although knew he had serious amends to make.

"Yeah, they're a little clunky, but very solid – probably why they use them for lessons and rentals," he heard Logan saying as he approached the pair. "Once you get the hang of the sails with one of these, it's pretty easy to switch to a sleeker boat."

Logan looked up at his cousin's approach, his eyes still able to hold hope when he saw Tony, still carrying that unconscious look of hero-worship that had never quite gone away, even as the child reached manhood. _Serious amends_, DiNozzo reminded himself guiltily upon seeing it...

But Ziva had looked up too, and announced, "I was telling Logan of my plans to learn to sail this summer, and apparently he too is an expert?" At the men's matching smirks in response, she studied Tony, slyly skeptical. "He talks as if he knows something about it, and tells me you _do_ know how to sail as well. So perhaps you _were_ telling me the truth."

Tony clapped his hand over his heart, dramatically. "Ziva, you wound me! How could you doubt me?"

She simply rolled her eyes. "So this means that I will have two potential coaches as I learn to sail." Ziva beamed confidently at both men, leaving both with the feeling that she wasn't likely to need all that much coaching.

"Just don't take it out on us when you love it so much you start craving your own boat," Tony warned. "You're a federal employee and that's definitely an above-paygrade purchase. Of course, maybe if you still get a paycheck from Mossad, too..." Tony baited.

"Maybe enough for a _very_ small boat," she teased back. "A very small, _used_ boat."

"Ha, a boat to borrow, Logan!" DiNozzo crowed at his cousin. "Let's make sure to get her hooked as soon as possible." He was further relieved to see Logan's ready grin in return – even though it didn't help his guilt much, Tony saw that Logan had bounced back from the hurt fairly quickly and apparently forgave him. He was reminded that, with his cousin, on the handful of occasions he'd done something to disappoint him or hurt him, the pain was much longer lasting on Tony's side for causing the hurt than on Logan's on the receiving end. _He trusts and loves you that much, idiot_, DiNozzo reminded himself again. _Never forget it..._ He tipped his head back toward the office he'd just left and said, "the Director seems to think my brain's full and anything else she'd have to say would just roll off without soaking in – so I'm off her radar until 0700 Monday morning." He raised his eyebrows. "What if we get you settled into Washington?"

"Not without a hug first!" The relative quiet of the bullpen was broken with Abby's enthusiastic rasp. "Logan!" Tony thought he heard a returned greeting from the teenager somewhere amid the arms and tats and dog collar. "Tony, I can't believe you'd sneak him out of here without my getting to say hi..."

"We would have stopped by the lab, Abs. Besides," he grinned as Abby released her hold on his cousin, "Logan's staying here this summer." He found that the idea, workload or not, pleased him more and more each time he repeated it.

"In the States, or – here, in Washington?"

Logan grinned and nodded, "yeah, _here_," resulting in another bone-crushing, Abby hug.

"That's _awesome!_" she crowed, "you'll be right here with Tony." Almost as quickly, though, Abby then pulled back to look at him, "but ... what happened to Belgium? I thought you had some internship starting..."

"Got a better one with the Post, here." Logan began to think that his decision might just work out after all. His words – and expression – earned him a third exuberant hug from Abby. In turn, Abby earned a silent word of thanks from DiNozzo for her enthusiasm and honesty – and her completely unsolicited comment thrown at Logan that his being here, with his cousin, was a _good_ thing.

Abby finally stopped squeezing the kid and held him again at arm's length. "You need _any_thing at all this summer, you just let Tony or one of us know. We're _family_, and you're Tony's family, so ours too."

Logan's grin was wide, but didn't hide the bit of touched surprise that he felt with her words. "Thank you."

Tony up behind Abby to squeeze her shoulder affectionately. "Thanks, Abs. Right now I'm going to get Logan home and squared away. You need me, call, okay?"

"Okay, but you've seen everything I have so far, so unless I have a brilliant new idea I won't have to."

"That's why I said to call, Abs." DiNozzo's grin was almost as easygoing as it used to be. "You _always_ have brilliant new ideas." Turning away from the beam his compliment had elicited from his forensic scientist – _his,_ not Gibbs' anymore, his irritating brain just _had_ to remind him – he turned to Logan to say, "let's get out of here."

As Logan nodded, and Abby took the moment to give Logan's arm another squeeze and tell him how great it was to have him in town, Tony turned to look at Ziva, still at her computer and watching it all in amusement. "Thank you," he mouthed silently, with all the sincerity he had in him.

She nodded in wordless acknowledgment, not missing the importance of her assistance that morning. In the past several days she had seen even more layers of her complex partner – first, the responsible, serious team leader struggling to take on responsibility for which he was truly ready, but in circumstances that left so much to be desired, and now this, the concerned and doting elder cousin, seen not only in his concern for an unguarded reaction but through the eyes of the young man who saw Tony as his hero. _Much to consider_, she mused.

Abby finished her welcome and bounced away, leaving Logan to turn to Ziva now, too. "Ziva – thanks for the ride and the coffee – and the company. Maybe..." he shrugged, a bit shyly, "if you do need some extra sailing instruction, I could help – to say thanks."

"I will remember that," Ziva smiled, "but it was my pleasure, Logan. I enjoyed meeting you."

Logan reddened only slightly this time, and returned her words. In the next moment, Tony caught Logan's eye and tipped his head toward the elevator. "C'mon, cuz, before anyone else grabs us."

The elevator arrived quickly, largely unused on Saturday, and as they got on they were suddenly each very aware it was the first time they were alone on this visit. Tony was determined not to leave Logan with the wrong idea from their morning, and no matter that it seemed as if the kid was past it all, he wouldn't trust something so important to assumption. "Logan, I'm really glad you'll be here this summer. It's perfect – and if I had any idea the Post had such a hotshot placement I would have been after you to sign up..."

Logan took in his words but struggled with them – apparently for all he'd seen and heard, he was still uncertain about their sincerity. "They really _did_ make it sound like it could be a lot of late nights, even some weekends," Logan said doggedly, his eyes cast away. He was an old hand at protecting himself from the callous indifference of his aunt and uncle, wrapping himself in denial and forced explanations for their crass comments, and he knew for certain that, unlike them, Tony never meant to hurt him. It was just the circumstances and bad timing, he insisted to himself. As the elevator stopped and the two stepped out into the garage, he went on, "it might be that our free times just don't match up anyway. No problem with playing things by ear."

DiNozzo had watched closely as his cousin still fought the effects of his surprise and apparent rejection, however momentary. With Logan's words and his brave attempt to make it all seem like no big deal, Tony stopped abruptly and laid a quiet hand on Logan's shoulder. "Hey – " He dipped his head a little as he sought his cousin's eyes, waiting until Logan looked back up at him. "I know how it seemed to you, how I reacted when you told me – and I'm sorry. You have to know it wasn't _you_, right? Well, other than the fact that I could blow off anyone else and not worry about it." He allowed a bit of a lopsided smile to rise, then fade before he went on, his tone serious, "there's no one I'd rather have around on my free time, to hang out or shoot some hoops or whatever. It's just that this job _used_ to be pretty much 24/7. Even when we were off duty for a day or two we never went anywhere without our phones, in case Gibbs needed us." He was quiet for a moment, clearly imagining the weeks and months ahead, before he continued, "now that I'm team leader, it means all that and more time here, probably – with the director, or catching up with reports or new leads..." His voice trailed again before he said, "the _only_ downside about having you nearby is the thought that I probably can't take advantage of it as much as I'd like – and even less than I would if Gibbs were still here."

Tony continued assessing the younger man as he looked away, considering his words. DiNozzo couldn't tell if he he'd managed to undo the damage he'd done ninety minutes earlier. "Logan," he urged, finally, "have I ever lied to you?"

DiNozzo understood that the pause he heard before the grudging answer came was more a reflection of his treatment by other family members than by him. "No," Logan conceded.

"And I'm not now."

"But you _have_ kept things to yourself," Logan's eyes rose again to meet his as he considered a topic clearly uncomfortable to him, "especially when you think it's for my own good, or you're protecting me. I know why you've done it, but I'm not a kid anymore, Tony, and I'd rather you be brutally honest than try to spare my feelings at the risk of interfering with your job."

DiNozzo looked again at his younger cousin and suddenly saw, not just the tow-headed toddler who had captured his heart all those years ago, or the shy, gangly fourteen year old trying to cope with his parents' sudden deaths, but a young man, one with his eyes and an intelligence that impressed him every time they spoke, one who was ready to look out for him now, the way he'd always tried to look out for Logan – and who made him proud every moment of every day. This kid was destined for great things, DiNozzo reflected; he was starting right here and now, ready to step out of the picture while his cousin regrouped in the wake of Gibbs' sudden departure. Tony's grin widened as he relaxed into it, suddenly remembering above all the depth of his bond with his younger cousin, and Logan saw the change immediately – from stiff, forced pleasantries to the expression his arrival usually brought, Tony's genuine, warm pleasure just to have him around now shone through. At that, his own tension drained away.

"Well, okay then, Mr. 'I just got a job at the Post so I'm bagging Belgium,'" Tony's grin kept widening as he started his broad teasing. "Who the hell chooses the District over Belgium anyway, at least for the summer? Have you even _been_ here in the summer? You know it's a swamp, right? I mean, a _literal_ swamp; on a good day the humidity out there makes it feel like you're walking through jello..."

Logan laughed as he picked up the griping. "Not to mention that the work is going to be _real_ work, running down stories, not just sitting in an air-conditioned cubicle, so I have to go _out_ in it..."

The cousins' smiles were a matched set now as both were filled with pride – Tony for his cousin's newest achievement and the fact it meant he would be nearby for a while; Logan for how, even in the middle of his team's upheaval, his own personal hero could again let him know in his own, inimitable way that he was wanted and appreciated and _loved_...

"When do you start?" Tony draped an arm around Logan and began to walk him toward his car, feeling an unexpected, emotional pang to find himself talking with his cousin as he would another adult, one with job responsibilities and places to be, and not just his doting young cousin.

"Monday."

"Right away, then." Tony nodded, determined not to show his new emotions. "Okay, what we do – _if_ you like," his concession to the fact that his cousin was now a working man, another adult, was sincere if a bit delayed, "we get you to my place, and get some food, and get you squared away. With you in the spare room it will be easier to 'play it by ear' for when we both happen to have some time free."

"Tony," Logan glanced at his cousin, almost sadly, as they reached his car. "You don't have to put me up, I really do have a place they gave me and I can..."

"You can use either one this way. Whichever is more convenient for you ... and whichever one you would like, whenever." DiNozzo spoke with the certainty that his candor allowed. "And we both promise to be absolutely honest with each other about how much time we have and if we have to pass on whatever movie or plans the other might be thinking about." He looked over the car's roof to the young man on the other side, not getting in until they reached this understanding. "Deal?"

Despite the scars that ran deep, despite the years of near-rejection he'd gotten from the aunt and uncle suddenly charged with his care following that awful day six years earlier – Logan's smile began to take hold to become joyful, enthusiastic – contagious. He pulled the passenger side door open, threw his backpack over the seat to the back, and gave Tony a look as cocky and confident as one of DiNozzo's own. "Deal," he said, then dropped into the seat. Tony followed suit.

"Pizza on the way?" he asked. "Lunch buffet not far from here opened fifteen minutes ago."

Logan laughed, relaxing into the morning with his cousin. "I knew I was gonna like D.C..."

_To be continued..._

_

* * *

_**A/N:** Further adventures of Logan and Ziva (!), and Logan and Tony, are plotted but not written. I wish I could say when they will be, but like Tony, I've never lied to you. I hope it will be much less time than this installment took, but if there is still interest in this story, I will try to get it in posting order without a huge delay.

Thanks for making it this far...


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